


A (Not So Concise) Argument for Hufflepuff!Ronan

by direwolfdemigod



Series: TRC Essays [1]
Category: Dreamer Trilogy - Maggie Stiefvater, Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Essays, Gen, Gryffindor!Ronan, Hogwarts AU, Hufflepuff!Ronan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:42:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23304085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/direwolfdemigod/pseuds/direwolfdemigod
Summary: Exactly what it sounds like. This is basically an essay compiling my analysis for why I think Ronan would be a Hufflepuff instead of a Gryffindor.
Series: TRC Essays [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1675918
Comments: 6
Kudos: 11





	A (Not So Concise) Argument for Hufflepuff!Ronan

Maggie Stiefvater is definitely the leading authority on her own characters and I shudder at the thought of contradicting her, but I’m in too deep so here we go.

Before I get into why I think Ronan would be a Hufflepuff, I’d like to break down what kinds of people actually end up in the house. Firstly, I want to address the common misconceptions that Hufflepuffs are cowards and that they’re always kind. The idea is that if either of these stereotypes is true, then Ronan can’t be a Hufflepuff because he’s not a coward and he’s definitely kind of an asshole.

Let’s start with Hufflepuff cowardice. Ironically, I think this opinion goes against everything Rowling was trying to argue throughout the series. The goal of Harry Potter was to show children that one-dimensional characterizations of people often fail to live up to the reality. I find the fact that Hufflepuffs are ceaselessly made fun of in the Harry Potter fandom kind of funny because it shows that the prejudice that is enshrined and ultimately denounced in that world is actually still absorbed by many fans.

But the other reason this became a stereotype, both in the wizarding world and the real world  — *gasp* bold of me to assume they’re not the same! — is that the defining characteristics of all the other houses inherently oppose the quality of cowardice. What I mean by that is that the Gryffindor quality of bravery obviously cancels out a possibility of cowardice, but in a lot of ways, so do ambition and wisdom. Think about it: taking risks is often a necessary step to success, something that’s harder to do if you’re a coward. And I think Ravenclaws would deeply resent and detest a reaction that is so deeply emotional and oftentimes illogical. 

This feels like one of those things everyone already knows, but no one really says out loud. Where  _ do  _ cowards belong at Hogwarts? None of the houses above easily lend themselves to cowards. And really, the quality of loyalty isn’t particularly compatible with cowardice either, at least not when it’s displayed at its best. Which means that we don’t group cowards into Hufflepuff because of what the house actually stands for. We group them into that house because of the preconceived notion that they are the worst house that is constantly fed to us throughout the first few installments.

The problem with an absolute statement like “Hufflepuffs are cowards” is that I only need to present one counterexample to prove that it’s a faulty premise. There’s so many to choose from, but I’m going to go with Cedric Diggory. You can call Cedric a lot of things, but I think it’s quite hard to call a Triwizard Champion a coward. I’ll actually come back to Cedric later, but for now, I think I’ve proven my point. Or rather, Cedric’s proven my point for me.

Next is the idea of Hufflepuff kindness. I want to preface this by saying that I think Maggie actually makes quite a few attempts to convince us of Ronan’s kindness. The scene where the gangsey passes around the mouse at the Barns comes to mind and so do all of his small gestures for Adam and his devotion to Gansey, Noah, and even Blue. Also, it’s important to remember that at the time of the Sorting, Niall Lynch wouldn’t be dead yet, meaning that Ronan would be the former version of himself that Gansey so frequently refers to. I imagine that younger version of Ronan as being sharp, but a little less sharp than he is after. I think this would look like a combination of Declan’s confidence and Matthew’s charm. He’d be the kid that makes fun of you, but also inexplicably makes you feel like you’re in on the joke.

If you disregard the change between pre- and post-death Ronan, I think the problem is mainly that at first glance, Ronan is simply not the  _ right _ type of kind. We don’t get to meet a whole lot of Hufflepuffs in the first few books, but the ones we do meet tend to be charismatic and likable. Of course, I’m yet again referring to Cedric. Their primary characteristic of loyalty usually ensures that they’re sociable people that like being liked. Consequently, Hufflepuff kindness is conflated with politeness and charm. 

But then again, I’d challenge the notion that Hufflepuffs need to be kind at all. In  _ The Chamber of Secrets _ , Harry overhears a conversation between Justin Finch-Fletchley and Hannah Abbott where they say some pretty nasty shit about him. However, Harry isn’t friends with them at this point, so maybe that’s not particularly convincing. That’s why my second major example, or rather counterexample, is Nymphadora Tonks. She’s not necessarily unkind, but she’s also not the polite and charming type of Hufflepuff that Cedric is. She’s a little rougher around the edges and she’s not afraid to push people, even the ones she loves, when she feels it’s the right thing to do. I was actually surprised when I searched up notable Hufflepuffs for this post and she was on the list, but I guess it just goes to show you that Tonks, like many Harry Potter characters, resists categorization. 

In fact, to a certain extent, the Harry Potter series is about how it’s really fucking hard to determine what a person’s defining characteristic is and that futhermore, it’s about how that defining characteristic is likely to undermine the complexity of their personality. Random side note: I think that as first-years, Gansey and Adam would totally question the validity of the house system for its cliquish nature and how it basically tries to tell kids what they  _ should _ become under the guise of ‘guidance’. 

All of this raises an interesting question: if both the Harry Potter series and our own common sense exposes that the house system is a broken system and we may not be able to determine where people fit by the ‘traditional’ means, how do we determine where our favourite characters, like Ronan, belong? If the qualities outlined above don’t define Hufflepuffs, and if we can’t rely on the one-dimensional characteristic of loyalty to guide us, then what kinds of people end up in the Hufflepuff house? 

It seems to me that while kids in different houses may have one defining quality, most of them end up with personalities that are an amalgamation of all four. But I think what changes between the houses are the  _ motivations  _ that characters have. Many of them are brave, but their reasons for bravery are different. That’s the lens I’m going to use to justify that Ronan should be a Hufflepuff and not a Gryffindor: I think his motivations fit the former better than the latter. 

I’m going to use my previous examples of Cedric and Tonks to form the identity that I think Hufflepuff cultivates. Then, I’m going to compare Ronan to those two examples and to Blue, mainly because she’s the only other confirmed TRC Gryffindor character. I think many of their reactions are similar, but I think they differ in motivation, which again, is the lens by which I’m going to determine which house Ronan belongs in. 

For me, the moment that defines Cedric Diggory comes right before his death. He and Harry are both steps away from the Triwizard Cup. Keep in mind, while Harry’s name was put in the goblet against his will, Cedric put his own name into it. He  _ wanted  _ to win, but this is what happens when Harry tells him to take the cup:

“Cedric took a deep breath, ‘You take it. You should win. That’s twice you’ve saved my neck here.’”

I think, like many characters, Cedric is more complicated than we give him credit for. He’s probably aware of the Hufflepuff stereotype and my guess is that anyone in the house would want to prove it wrong. This is his opportunity to gain glory for himself and for his house. But he offers it to Harry because he saved him.

This is different from Harry telling Cedric to take the cup for a couple of reasons. I think Harry’s motivations are more complicated. He probably feels a little guilty, since he’s spent a lot of the book resenting the other boy for his charm and his relationship with Cho Chang. Moreover, Harry’s probably quite sick of attention at this point, given that the press has been hounding and slandering him throughout the story.

Cedric’s not naive, but he’s also genuinely a good person. His motivation is that he believes Harry deserves to win for saving his life. In fact, Harry tells him to, “‘Stop being noble’.” Hufflepuff is distinguished for its selflessness, its unwavering belief in doing right by the people you care about, an idea that’s reinforced when Harry suggests that they both take the cup.

“For a moment, Cedric looked as though he couldn’t believe his ears; then his face split in a grin. ‘You’re on,’ he said. ‘Come here.’ [...] He and Cedric both grasped a handle.”

There’s a few things to note about this quote. Firstly, to me, the line “Cedric looked as though he couldn’t quite believe his ears” is heartbreaking. It confirms my earlier analysis that Cedric isn’t naive; he knows how most people in the other houses behave, how they’re more inclined to selfishness. So he jumps at the chance for teamwork, the chance to share this moment of glory with someone else instead of going it alone. This is incredible to me, mainly because so many people are obsessed with being the best at something, but here, Cedric seems to relish in the opportunity of being the best  _ with _ someone else.

Also, the fact that Harry is the one to suggest that they both take the cup is so  _ telling _ . This part of my analysis will become important again when I compare Ronan to Blue, but for now I’m going to call what Harry displays here  _ initiative _ . No one has ever tried sharing the cup before, so neither he nor Cedric are sure of what will happen. But Harry is the one who thinks of taking it at the same time, showing that he is often just brave for the sake of being brave. Gryffindors don’t need any other reason for doing something except that they want to or that they’re willing to get over a fear to do it. Harry displays it here and he also displays it in many of the other books when he goes out of his way to do dangerous things because he thinks it's the right thing to do. 

On the other hand, Cedric doesn’t think of doing that — he doesn’t take the same initiative — but once Harry suggests it, he’s all in. He’s willing to do it because Harry is willing to do it with him, solidifying a connection between them that is, unfortunately, lost once he dies. 

(This is me quietly projecting my bitterness at the fact that we never got a Cedric/Harry friendship.)

So there’s three major Hufflepuff characteristics that I get from this:

1) They’re willing to give up their own ambitions or the things they want for others. That might be one of the reasons that the other houses, especially Slytherin, make fun of them so much. 

2) They do things for people without expecting anything in return — sound familiar?

3) Their main motivation is not bravery for the sake of bravery, but bravery for the sake of other people.

Then there’s Tonks. I’m going to look at her behaviour in her relationship with Lupin, but just to be clear, there’s a lot more to her than that. We get part of their relationship from Pottermore, learning that because of his lycanthropy, Lupin convinces himself that no one will ever be able to love him. And then Tonks does, and while he’s thrilled about it, he continuously rejects her advances because he’s afraid of hurting her and any child they might have.

But Tonks pushes, knowing that it’ll be hard, knowing that her life won’t be ‘normal’, but also knowing that she wants this and that Lupin wants it too. She’s also a Hufflepuff, so I’m inclined to believe that part of her wants to prove to Lupin that he can be loved and that someone will put in the work, time, and effort to be with him. 

So I think the main takeaway is that Hufflepuffs are also caretakers, that they aim to protect the people they love and make them feel worthy and happy. Also, damn, if you didn’t think that their relationship is eerily similar to Ronan and Adam’s, then I must be doing something wrong.

Side note: this great interaction takes place between Ginny and Tonks, reminding us yet again that most characters resist the simple identifications of the house system:

**Tonks:** I was never a prefect myself. My Head of House said I lacked certain necessary qualities.

**Ginny:** Like what?

**Tonks:** Like the ability to behave myself.

Which… like… Ronan? Is that you?

And now I’m  _ finally _ going to talk about what this means in the context of  _ The Raven Cycle _ . First, let’s talk about Ronan and Blue. It’s actually really lucky that their characters are so similar because it creates a great base for comparison on a lot of points. If I ever get down to writing the multiple analyses swirling around in my mind about the different relationship dynamics in TRC, that will become abundantly clear. 

Anyway, as I mentioned, many of their reactions are similar. It’s easy to group them together because they are both undeniably brave. I absolutely agree with Maggie when she says that Blue is a Gryffindor because I think that both her actions and motivations fit into that mold. Like Harry, Blue takes initiative. She does things on principle or for the greater good or because she wants to achieve  _ something more _ . 

I don’t think Ronan shows that same kind of initiative. Here, I’m going to compare Ronan’s motivations for certain actions, mainly in  _ The Raven Boys _ and  _ The Dream Thieves _ , to the motivations of Cedric and Tonks. Keep Blue’s motivations in mind while you read and you’ll see why I think they’re actually quite different.

Before I look at specific actions, I’m going to address Ronan’s habits. His urge to participate in street races is not brave. It’s a coping mechanism, something dangerous that he wants to do not to overcome a fear, but to break the monotony of his everyday life. The reason why I think this is true is because it’s frequently compared to his excessive drinking, which is far less likely to be considered brave.

So the three characteristics we get from Cedric are that he’s willing to give up his own ambitions for others, that he does things without expecting anything in return, and that his motivations are usually linked to other people. 

This dips into  _ Call Down the Hawk _ , but I think that Ronan does show that he’s willing to give up the things he wants for the sake of others. Namely, he’s willing to move to Boston, away from the only place he’s ever truly loved, to be with Adam. In fact, he’s disappointed when he can’t get a place close to him because of the nightwash.

Moreover, he leaves Adam gifts like the hand cream, mixtape, and rent money without ever expecting anything or even really believing that Adam could love him back. If that’s not selfless then I literally don’t know what is. Ronan just wants to make the people he loves happy. His reward is seeing them happy. That’s why he exemplifies this characteristic.

And then there’s the biggest question: why does Ronan do things that we consider brave? Throughout the books, Ronan has a few truly heroic and brave moments, but I’m going to focus on the time he punches Adam’s dad and the time he confronts Kavinsky,

The first example is… complicated to say the least. I don’t necessarily want to imply that Ronan punching Adam’s dad should be perceived as heroic. In a lot of ways, it’s reckless and shortsighted. Really, Ronan is lucky that things work out as well as they do.

That being said, I don’t think Ronan punches Adam’s dad on principle or for the greater good or because he believes it’s the right thing to do like a Gryffindor would. I think he punches Adam’s dad for Adam.

There’s one line I’m going to focus on:

“And then, inexplicably, he turned his head from Adam, and he shouted, ‘What do  _ you  _ want?’

‘To do this,’ Ronan Lynch snarled, smashing his fist into the side of Robert Parrish’s face.”

First, I’d like to point out that Adam’s dad uses the word “want” when he turns to Ronan. This is a clever way for Maggie to tell the reader that Ronan’s been wanting to hit Adam’s dad for a really long time. That’s also clear in the interaction between Adam and Ronan that immediately precedes this moment when Ronan tells Adam that he doesn’t have to go home.

This is important because it means that Ronan’s been holding off on punching Adam’s dad for a long time. Ronan doesn’t take the initiative to get Adam out of his situation. He doesn’t say ‘damn the consequences’ just to do something on principle. He follows Adam’s lead, knowing that the other boy doesn’t want him to do anything to hurt his dad. He holds off for so long because he wants to do right by Adam.

But of course, he does finally break, and he happens to break at a time when Robert Parrish looks about ready to kill his son. Ronan isn’t triggered into action until directly confronted with the suffering of one of the people he cares about most. In that moment, he decides that the importance of helping Adam is greater than the fear of any consequences that might come from it. Like Cedric, Ronan doesn’t take initiative, he reacts to the visceral need he has to strengthen a connection and protect the people he cares about.

However, in  _ The Raven Boys _ we still don’t understand much about Ronan, so this example is arguably weaker than his confrontation of Kavinsky. To Ronan, Kavinsky is a literal manifestation of all of Ronan’s secrets: he’s a dreamer, he’s gay, and he knows about Cabeswater. Thus, when Ronan goes to confront Kavinsky, he’s not just confronting a boy; he’s confronting all the internal struggles he’s been dealing with over the course of the entire book. And why does he confront him? Because Kavinsky takes Matthew hostage. Again, Ronan wouldn’t go talk to Kavinsky out of some abstract need for closure or progress like I think Blue, or any other Gryffindor, would. He goes because he needs to help and protect Matthew, because he’s willing to face any demon for his little brother. 

Ronan’s similarities to Tonks are more obvious, I think. Ronan is a caretaker, just like she is. He knows that maintaining a relationship with Adam will be hard. He knows that they’ll fight and that they’ll be far away from each other and that they’ll often miscommunicate. He also knows that Adam has a hard time believing that people can simultaneously know him and love him for who he is. Ronan doesn’t shy away from any of that. On the contrary, he seems eager to make Adam smile, to make him happy, to develop their relationship, just like Tonks with Lupin.

And of course there’s the small fact that Ronan’s fucking great with animals and that he literally has to take care of a half-goat child. 

So that’s pretty much my entire argument. This ended up being more than three thousand words which is… actually ridiculous. I’m going to post this on my AO3 account, direwolfdemigod, under an essay series because I’ll probably write more posts in this format. I am all for discussion and differences in opinion, so feel free to add on if you think I missed something or you interpreted something differently. I hope the people who got this far enjoyed it!

For now, I’m going to end off with one final thought. As I’ve said, many characters resist simplicity. That’s why J.K. wrote Harry asking the Sorting Hat to put him in Gryffindor. A lot not only depends on what you are, but what you want to be.

I think there’s a strong argument for Gryffindor!Ronan — even though I personally prefer Hufflepuff!Ronan — and I think this idea of choice is the basis for it. Just imagine it: his father was probably a Gryffindor, so he definitely wants to be one too. He sits down on that chair and the Sorting Hat starts muttering in his head, spewing shit about how he would do well in either Gryffindor or Hufflepuff. I think that Ronan would ask to be in Gryffindor, just like his dad. Which is a shame: think about the shocked looks on everyone’s faces when the son of the infamous Niall Lynch is sorted into Hufflepuff. What a legend.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! This is the first essay about TRC that I'm publishing on aO3. It's also on tumblr under the account raven-cycle-theories, so if you enjoyed it, please go reblog it on tumblr!


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